San Antonio daily light. [volume] (San Antonio, Tex.) 1886-1907, 1887-08-09
THE SQUIRE'S GHOST.


to have rested quietly in the grave beside
him. But it didn't; at least, so a great many
people were saying. Every man and woman
and child in Swansdown county was at Ok
vile church that day and sat through Parson
Doolittle's two hour discourse on the virtues
of the deceased, while they admired the pretty
widow, who was there, dressed in the most
becoming mourning. Although she had
turned 40, and was trife too feshy, she was
still fair and great favorite l said that
the squire's ghost ought TO have known
better than to he roaming restlessly abroad;
perhaps the poor specter never succeeded
in getting safely under the carved granite
pile in Oxville churchyard. At any rate
there was no doubt that the apparition
of the worthy gentleman had often
been seen of late at the windows
of the rear and almost wholly unoccupied ex-
tertlon of the large mansion, especially on
moonlight nights, and sometimes just before
dusk Dan Grady, the ancient gardener, had
told Maria, the cook, in the strictest conf
dence, that on two successive evenings he had
beheld the form of the old master himself
walking back and forth on sort Of small
gallery that opened from one Of the upper
windows on the north side of the house. To
peached by certain black bottle in the barn,
which he pulled the cork out of pretty often,
and we know that kitchen gossip, especially
when mixed with gin and hot water, gener-
ally flows pretty freely on all household
matters. 1t was an easy going old mansion,
even in the squire's time; everything was en-
tirely too free, as his neighbour Judge Halby,
often told him. And it was still easier going
now, in spite Of these ghostly visits from its
dead master. Mrs. Latham's heart was far
too soft for her ever to become hard mis-
tress although she needed to know how to
manage, as the farm and property left her
were very large and she lived there all alone.
with neither child nor relative for companion
ship Judge Halby was her nearest neighbor,
and their farms touched, although he lived
three miles away. Still this did not prevent
him from riding over pretty often to advise
the widow about her affairs, for the Judge
was a widower, and while nearer 60 than so,
was handsome, well preserved man. His
only two children had married and settled
out west, and, like the widow, he was lone
mortal, though unlike her, perhaps, he craved
a companion. The old squire had now been
dead long time, long enough, anyway, the
judge thought-it was exactly eighteen
months-the two farms would thrive much
better under one management, and, in short,
he had no difficulty in persuading himself that
it was clearly In order that the comedy Mrs.
Latham should grace the head Of his table in
stead of eating her dinner alone The only
trouble was in persuading her.
confess to being quite at loss as to how
widowers Of so offer themselves in marriage
to widows of 40, and whether the usual form
ulas of proposal and acceptance or rejection
will do duty for such occasions. Neither am
/ certain that the judge was positively re-
jected by Mrs. Latham, although he did not
consider her answer entirely satisfactory
This was over six months ago, and still he
was as assiduously attentive as ever, and had
lately begun to hear something about these
ghost stories, although never abiding to them
in Mrs. Latham's presence Her maid, Mary
Mullins, was always careful to avoid the sub
ject, so that beyond few whispers here and
there it is not likely that her mistress ever
heard much about her late husbands appari-
TONS But the judge was exercised more
than ever over the danger which Mrs. La
than ran in staying all alone in that big
house, where any night she might be muir
dered in her bed or have her barns burned
down by tramps.
This was November, and it was April when
she had finally told him, "with tears in her
eyes, too, d-n it," he muttered to himself, as
he turned his horses head toward Oakfield,
that out OF respect 10 the sources memory
she should ever retain MS name
"hat posh tnat Is, any way NO inner
man ever married three inner women In TINS
county than JOSIAH Latham, but ne was W
when he died, and why under the canopy
should young creature like her sacrifice her
self to her husbands memory, Just as II she was
any heather Hindoo woman who thinks she
must roast herself to cinder because her
husband has finished his tripP And the
judge whipped up his white footed mare and
drove home in deep disgust.
Nevertheless he did not throw up his hand,
tried 70 serve her in every nossihIa way
Really she conId not brine, herself 10 be ve,v
unkind TO him. for. after all what can a lone
woman do with a large pronertv ON her hands
~ she has NOT n discreet moIe adviser u,,on
whom she can reIv2 Besides IN tbesa late
November DAYS che was becyinnino, 10 cot Low
spirited and nervous. Sometimes ne She sat
by the window and watched the Uoroaous
MANY tinted leaves as thew we re sIyent around
the house by the whistIinp wind leaving tbe
trees with their naked limbs outlined AGAINST
the gray. autumnaI sl,v She wondered If ber
life might not be wearing away IN its winter
Her sprinetime had not been beautiful Not
until She had reached the September of her
DAVIS did her beauty ripen. And now some
times, the glass gently reminded her that